Platform

Snap Cuts 1,000 Jobs, 16% of Workforce, as CEO Cites AI Efficiency Gains

Published on April 16, 2026

Snap is laying off approximately 1,000 full-time employees, representing 16% of its global workforce, the company confirmed in a memo from CEO Evan Spiegel and a subsequent SEC filing.

Spiegel attributed part of the restructuring rationale to advances in AI. “We believe that rapid advancements in artificial intelligence enable our teams to reduce repetitive work, increase velocity, and better support our community, partners, and advertisers,” Spiegel wrote. He pointed to existing deployments of AI across Snapchat+, the company’s ad platform, and its Snap Lite infrastructure as evidence of smaller teams producing meaningful results.

In addition to the workforce reductions, Snap is closing more than 300 open roles. The company had approximately 5,260 full-time employees as of December 2025.

Financial Targets

Snap projects the cuts will reduce its annualized cost base by more than $500 million by the second half of 2026. The company estimates pre-tax charges of $95 million to $130 million, primarily from severance, contract termination costs, and other impairment charges, with $75 million to $100 million expected as future cash expenditures.

For Q1 2026, Snap estimates total revenue of $1.529 billion, up 12% year-over-year, and adjusted EBITDA of $233 million, compared with $108 million in Q1 2025. The company will report full Q1 results on May 6. For full-year 2025, Snap reported revenue of $5.931 billion, up 11%, and a net loss of $460 million. Snapchat reached 946 million global monthly active users in Q4 2025.

In a presentation to investors, Snap described its position as a “crucible moment,” stating the company is “squeezed between giants with enormous resources and nimble startups moving fast” and is “pivoting toward profitable growth.”

Severance Terms

U.S.-based employees affected by the layoffs will receive four months of severance, healthcare coverage, equity vesting, and career transition support. Snap said it will follow local processes for employees outside the U.S. and seek to provide comparable support.

Snap joins Amazon and Oracle in cutting jobs, while Meta has also reportedly explored or planned major workforce reductions in 2026.

Source: Variety, TechCrunch